Real tax problem is convoluted system

Published February 18. 2014 12:01AM

David P. Kenney Waterford

A well-known tax preparation chain now advertises that Americans are owed a billion dollars in returns that they don't know how to retrieve from the IRS. The ad implies that their services are the means to our financial salvation.

The following must be perfectly clear. Our tax code has been crafted to be unintelligible. It is layered and convoluted to such a degree that the abuse of taxpayers is a grave and looming danger. We should never have allowed the IRS the means and power to abscond with our funds. It is laughable that a tax preparation service would even pretend to be able to deliver us from evil forces as great as those at the will and disposal of the IRS.

With the Internal Revenue Service itself facing potential criminal prosecution, we must never consider hiring third parties for help in complying with any nefarious government machinations. Only an unworthy citizenry will not stand up for itself and demand sane government and just treatment. We must now fight for the restructuring of our revenue system. That effort could include the total dissolution of the IRS. Further, alternate solutions such as a flat tax or exclusive end use tax should be studied and considered for implementation.